Red Star Rounds Out Roster in Advance of Training Camp

With training camp set to open for Sportvereniging Red Star Aalst in the coming days, the club has finalized their roster with the addition of a few new free agents. The new additions are:

• Felipe Wynne - F - USA - 25 y/o
• Modraed Engham - M - ENG - 18 y/o
  
• Marijtie-Jans Etienne - M - BEL - 30 y/o
  
• Sigizo Lievens - D - BEL - 30 y/o

Capable American striker Felipe Wynne joins Aalst on a 4 year deal hoping to add strength to a unit that really failed to score regularly last season. The 25 year old spent the last two seasons at American league club Brownwood Lions scoring 46 goals in 72 league matches.

Perhaps the highest profile signing of the offseason for Red Star was that of English teenage phenom Modraed Engham. The 18 year old midfielder was the top performer for England's U18 team last year and joins his new team on a 5 year deal. Engham's ability to receive and move the ball to teammates, his set piece prowess, and his awareness on both sides of the ball make him a formidable prospect that Aalst fans are hoping is worthy of his reported $475,000 annual salary.

Marijtie-Jans Etienne continues his journeyman career this season signing a 1 year contract with Aalst. The 30 year old Belgian midfielder has 42 goals in 278 BPL matches over an 8 year career at the top level of Belgian football.

After starting his career in England, defender Sigizo Lievens has also settled into a journeyman career in his native Belgium. At 30 years old has 210 BPL appearances, but has impressively scored 50 goals using his 6'3 frame and impressive ball heading prowess.

In a recent interview, manager Rickard Oberlander called his new signings 'satisfactory' and stressed the need for everyone to come together in training to be prepared for the year ahead. "The time has once again come for us to move from being a bunch of athletes and becoming a proper team" said Oberlander. "We are not a fancy new team anymore. People expect results, and I have maybe the highest expectations here. Our goal is to begin to show our ability to compete at the top level. That's where we need to reach to this season."

The season preview for Aalst will be released as the season approaches in around a month's time.

Several New Players Join Aalst in Free Agency

As expected, Red Star had an incredibly busy start to the free agency period. The club has already added 8 new players, and is expected to add even more in the coming weeks. The new signings are:

• Owen Lewey - D - USA - 30 y/o
• Isham Barry - M - USA - 26 y/o
• Leonardo Lippmann - M - GER - 22 y/o
• Ernst Burchard - M - GER - 18 y/o 
• Isaak Smet - D - BEL - 27 y/o
• Friedrick Acker - D - GER - 18 y/o
• Gaele Leemans - F - BEL - 28 y/o
• Hillegont Raes - GK - BEL - 27 y/o

American defender Owen Lewey brings his wealth of experience in his native USA, signing a 2 year deal with Aalst. In 10 seasons, the 30 year old Lewey has 305 league matches played scoring 10 goals. He spent the last 3 years with Baltimore FC, finishing in 4th place in the league each year.

Fellow American Isham Barry also joins from the American top league, having spent the last 3 seasons playing there for Jets FC and Dionysus FC, scoring 23 goals in 108 matches. The 26 year old midfielder returns to Belgium after beginning his pro career at Super Eagles of Brussels FC, failing to garner significant playing time with that club. Barry signed a 3 year deal with Red Star, and will challenge for a starting role in the midfield.

22 year old midfielder Leonardo Lippmann has led a surprisingly journeyman career in his native Germany for his young age. Over 4 German league seasons, he scored 18 goals in 134 league matches. Aalst signed Lippmann to a 5 year contract.

German teenager Ernst Burchard signed his first professional contract, a five year deal with Aalst to play on the team as a midfielder. The 18 year old showed flashes in his U18 career as a skilled scorer from both the midfield and forward positions, as well as a strong free kick taker.

Belgian defender Isaak Smet joins Red Star on a 2 year contract bringing his four seasons of BPL experience with him to Aalst. The 27 year old scored 19 goals in 124 league matches while playing mostly as a wing defender.

A second member of Germany's U18 team last season, defender Friedrick Acker, also signed a 5 year deal with Red Star. The 18 year old Acker proved himself to be a thoughtful defender last season, with a particular skill at clearing the ball a great distance out of impending danger.

Veteran Belgian striker Gaele Leemans signed a 1 year deal to join Red Star in a depth role up front. The 28 year old spent the last 2 of his 9 career BPL seasons playing for Bill FC, where he had 19 and 21 goal seasons in league play.

Aalst also added a veteran to play as their backup goalkeeper, adding Hillegont Raes on a 2 year deal. The 27 year old Belgian has 6 years of BPL experience, most recently with Hampton SC where he started 30 league matches.

Signings are expected to continue as the team is fully assembled for training camp in just over a week's time.

Sportvereniging Red Star Aalst: Season 103 Review

With their inaugural season in the BPL now complete, Red Star Aalst can look back on a solid, if unremarkable campaign. The club finished with a 9-7-22 record, which put them in 13th in the league table, some 21 points behind the 12th place club Belgium FC.

President Harmanus Maes spoke in a recent interview about the growth of the team in year one, and the incredible return of top tier football to the region. "To see Aalststadion restored to its former glory does give me a great deal of joy" said Maes. "We're up to a 30,000 capacity, the fans have come flooding back to watch the team play, and the team itself has grown considerably in our first year. Hopefully, it is momentum that we can carry forward into the coming years."

Aalst finished the season with 37 goals scored (13th in the league) and 70 goals conceded (13th), but with an average of 67.9 goals for teams in the BPL, it seems that Aalst was a lot closer to mid-table defensively. The team was caught with a fair number of cards as they had 35 yellow cards (9th) and 6 red cards (T16th)

As for the usually gruff manager Rickard Oberlander, he did complement his team somewhat during the press conference following their final league match of the season. "Being a team brand new to this league is a difficult thing indeed" said Oberlander. "The players here worked hard. We have work to do still on scoring and on discipline, but it is a start at very least. I only hope this continues into the new year."

Of the individual players on the club, few shone greater than captain and goalkeeper Archibald Friedland. The 22 year old managed 8 clean sheets in 31 matches, and was one of the top goalkeepers in the entire league. Offensively, Claudie Huntington was the only Red Star player to reach double digit goals with 10, while Larenzo Kirk had 8, Adrian-James scored 6, while Reinoud Verschueren and Hendricus-Jacobus Peeters had 4 each. AJ Castro was far and away the most undisciplined player on the team with 15 yellow cards and 4 red cards, his only 4 missed league matches coming as a result of suspensions.

Red Star can now look forward to a very busy offseason as only 8 players remain on their current roster.